Public Comment

A leading Africa analyst, Horace Campbell, shed new light on the role of U.S. Special Forces in Africa. Under the guise of fighting terrorism, the U.S. and France are in fact protecting their commercial interests. The death of four U.S. Special Forces follows six years after the U.S., France and Britain invaded and destroyed Libya.

Last year President Obama said that the attack on Libya was the biggest mistake of his presidency. In the same year the British Parliament released a damning report that admitted the invasion of Libya was based on lies. The morally challenged French developed an alliance with the terrorist group, al-Qaeda, to overthrow Gaddafi. More and more African countries are expressing anger and frustration over the presence of foreign forces. What the people of West Africa desperately need are funds for reconstruction, health clinics and housing to raise employment for their youth. It makes little sense for the United States to be spending $100 million to build a base in Agadez, in Niger, where France already has a military base. France is heavily invested in Niger which provides 75 percent of its electricity needs utilizing Niger’s huge reserves of uranium. Concerned over growing Chinese influence in the region, France orchestrated a coup d’état overthrowing Mamadou Tandja, the president of Niger. It is time for US citizens demand all US forces withdraw from Niger and surrounding African countries.